Microsoft is doubling down on artificial intelligence. CEO Satya Nadella has announced the formation of CoreAI – Platform and Tools, a new engineering division to kick off Redmond’s “next innings” of AI platform shift with seasoned technology leader of Indian origin, Jay Parikh, in the lead.
Parikh’s appointment places him amongst Microsoft’s top brass. He will be reporting directly to CEO Nadella. He joined Microsoft in October 2024 without a formal title or role and so, this marks his first major role since he was brought in.
Who is Jay Parikh?
Jay Parikh is a renowned figure in the tech world, known for his extensive experience in managing large-scale engineering projects.
“From my earliest conversations with Satya, Microsoft’s commitment to leading the AI platform shift is absolutely clear. This shift is not only a tremendous opportunity but also incomprehensibly complex—both of these aspects are the perfect combination for what I’m drawn to,” Parikh had posted on LinkedIn after joining Microsoft.
He was vice president and global head of engineering for Facebook (now Meta) for more than a decade, from 2009 to 2021, before going on to lead the cloud security platform Lacework as its CEO. Prior to Meta, Parikh was VP engineering at Akamai Technologies.
What will Parikh do at Microsoft?
Parikh will lead CoreAI – Platform and Tools, a new division formed by merging Microsoft’s existing developer division, AI platform teams, and parts of the Office of the CTO group including AI Supercomputer, AI Agentic Runtimes, and Engineering Thrive, per a blog post penned by Nadella himself.
The division will oversee the development of end-to-end Copilot & AI stack for both of Microsoft’s first-party and third-party customers to build AI applications more efficiently in consonance with the company’s vision of creating “agentic applications.”
“Excited to officially kick off this new chapter with team CoreAI! It’s an honor to support a team that has already built such an incredible foundation during this pivotal moment in AI. This team’s work has been a driving force behind this new wave of innovation, and I couldn’t be more inspired to build on it,” Parikh posted after the new appointment.
The AI platform shift
Nadella emphasised that 2025 will be a pivotal year for AI, with AI models fundamentally changing the nature of applications. He likened the current AI shift to the introduction of the graphical user interface (GUI), internet servers, and cloud-native databases, all happening simultaneously.
“2025 will be about model-forward applications that reshape all application categories. More so than any previous platform shift, every layer of the application stack will be impacted. It’s akin to GUI, internet servers, and cloud-native databases all being introduced into the app stack simultaneously. Thirty years of change is being compressed into three years!” he said in the blog post.
CoreAI will be at the forefront of these developments. Parikh will collaborate closely with other key leaders at Microsoft, including Scott Guthrie (Microsoft Cloud + AI), Rajesh Jha (Experiences + Devices), Charlie Bell (Microsoft Security), Mustafa Suleyman (Microsoft Consumer AI), and CTO Kevin Scott.
Microsoft’s ongoing AI investments
Microsoft is making substantial investments in AI, both financially and strategically. The company has committed to spending $80 billion on data centres this fiscal year to support its AI ambitions. The company’s AI business is projected to reach a $10 billion annual revenue run rate, per CFO Amy Hood.
As part of the strategic overhall, Microsoft recently made its biggest bet on India with a massive $3 billion investment to boost the country’s AI and cloud ecosystem.
The company is also looking for “the best people that share this vision,” Parikh said, urging relevant candidates to connect with him for potential hiring.
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